Real Estate Prices in Greek Cities Soar in 2019

The real estate market in Greece’s largest cities recorded an impressive increase in the price of sales and rentals in 2019, according to the accumulative data published by Spitogatos, one of the country’s largest real estate websites.

The marked uptick in both rental and sales prices made the Greek real estate sector one of the fastest-growing markets in the entire south of Europe.

Of course, these developments are negative for those on the side of renting or buying, since the cost of renting or buying a home in Greece has been steadily increasing for several years now.

The highest increase in selling prices in 2019 was recorded in the city center of Greece’s second-largest city, Thessaloniki.

There, according to the data released by the Spitogatos website, an average real estate price increase of 28 percent was recorded in 2019 compared to 2018 figures.

Athens’ city center followed Thessaloniki closely, with an average price increase of 27.8 percent.

The city of Piraeus came in third, experiencing a 16.3-percent increase in 2019.

Rental prices followed an overall rising trend as well in 2019, with prices in Piraeus this time topping the list for the largest increases. Rents in Piraeus rose by 25.2 percent on average in 2019, compared to the previous year.

Additionally, rental prices on the islands of the Saronic Gulf, the island of Corfu, the city of Trikala and Athens’s central and western suburbs recorded impressive increases, from 19 to 23.1 percent.

These increases have brought prices in many parts of Greece back to pre-crisis levels, similar to prices recorded in 2008.

At the same time, rather surprisingly, several counties and cities on the Greek mainland’s periphery experienced significant declines in real estate prices last year.

For example, the region of Grevena in West Macedonia recorded a reduction of 19.4 percent in its real estate selling prices in 2019.

The regions of Trikala, Boeotia, Phocis and Drama followed, experiencing declines from 5.9 to 8.2 percent.